Inflatable metal coil holder

ABSTRACT

The holder features a center core or mandrel unit for mounting a pre-wound coil of strip metal stock, which unit is essentially comprised of a conventional pneumatic rubber automobile tire conventionally mounted to a hub disc. The tire and disc are carried for rotation by a horizontal shaft, which is in turn releasably borne for rotation on upwardly concave journalling saddles atop a pair of spaced rigid support posts or frame standards of a welded angle iron base. A spoke carrying coil end gauge and guide sleeve has an adjustably clamped mount on the mandrel shaft; and one end of the latter is releasably held down on an adjacent journal saddle by an adjustable hook type device. At its opposite end, and outboard of the other journal saddle, the shaft fixedly carries a belt pulley of a control unit by which rotation of the mandrel and coil is appropriately restrained manually as desired, and the tension of the withdrawn coil material controlled accordingly. Said control unit includes a second pulley about which the belt is also trained, which second pulley has a rotative pivot on a belt tensioning arm; and the latter is itself pivoted on a fixed base of the coil holder. A manually operable control lever pivotally mounted on an adjacent frame upright carries a control lug which is slidably guided on the pivoted pulley carrying belt tensioning arm, thus to vary the position of the latter, the tension on the belt and the resistance to rotation of the first pulley and the mandrel or core.

ite lddings HNFLATABLE METAL COIL HOLDER [75] Inventor: Michael D.

Mich.

[73] Assignee: Delta Manufacturing, Inc, Detroit,

Mich.

22 Filed: July 8,1971

21 Appl.No.: 160,791

llddings, Petersburg,

Primary Examiner -George F. Mautz Assistant Examiner-Edward J. McCarthy Attorney-L. Gaylord Hulbert et al.

[451 May 1,1973

57 ABSTRACT The holder features a center core or mandrel unit for mounting a pre-wound coil of strip metal stock, which unit is essentially comprised of a conventional pneumatic rubber automobile tire conventionally mounted to a hub disc. The tire and disc are carried for rotation by a horizontal shaft, which is in turn releasably borne for rotation on upwardly concave journalling saddles atop a pair of spaced rigid support posts or frame standards of a welded angle iron base. A spoke carrying coil end gauge and guide sleeve has an adjustably clamped mount on the mandrel shaft; and one end of the latter is releasably held down on an adjacent journal saddle by an adjustable hook type device. At its opposite end, and outboard of the other journal saddle, the shaft fixedly carries a belt pulley of a control unit by which rotation of the mandrel and coil is appropriately restrained manually as desired, and the tension of the withdrawn coil material controlled accordingly. Said control unit includes a second pulley about which the belt is also trained, which second pulley has a rotative pivot on a belt tensioning arm; and the latter is itself pivoted on a fixed base of the coil holder. A manually operable control lever pivotally mounted on an adjacent frame upright carries a control lug which is slidably guided on the pivoted pulley carrying belt tensioning arm, thus to vary the position of the latter, the tension on the belt and the resistance to rotation of the first pulley and the mandrel or core.

15 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEW H973 U.73O.45l

SHEET 2 OF 2 INVENTOR m/cv/Azz 0. /00//V65 TTORNEYS INFLATABLE METAL COIL HOLDER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The holder of the invention finds application in the support of pre-coiled or reeled sheet or strip metal stock to be unwound and fed under tension for one purpose or another, typically to a punch press, although many other uses are of course contemplated. In any such field of application, the present holder serves as a wholly practical and equally effective substitute for much more expensive jaw type centering holders known to the art.

2. Description of the Prior Art I am unaware of any existing prior patents dealing with an inflatable tire-type coil holder of the general type of the present improvement, not to mention the several specific features discussed in the Abstract. However, Bulletin D-lO (Revision 4) of F. J. Littell Machine Co., of Chicago, Ill.,- discloses various emboidments of more complex and expensive styles of coil centering reel structure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION As constituted by an ordinary automobile or like tire fixed on an elongated horizontal shaft, a coil holding mandrel or reel unit is provided which is rotatably jour naled adjacent opposite ends thereof by simple open trunnion type saddle components, onto which the unit is readily placed (or removed from) manually, or by manual hoist means at most. The holder is of a construction typically capable of a job shop fabrication and assembly of its parts, but lends itself equally to mass production practice. That is, its components are extremely simple in nature, being either readily available on the market, or simply and inexpensively constructed individually and just as readily assembled; and, as basically dismantled to frame, mandrel and control sub-assemblies, the holder may be compactly crated for shipment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of the improved holder in operative assembly with a metal strip coil gripped by its tire-type core;

FIG. 2 is a view in transverse vertical section on line 2-2 of FIG. 1, the arrow indicating the direction of pull of the coiled stock in unwinding from the holder;

FIG. 3 is a view in end elevation of the holder, as from the left in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is-another end elevational view in larger scale, being fragmentary in nature and certain control belt and sprocket means being omitted;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary view in transverse vertical section on line 5-5 of FIG. 1, showing a simple shaft hold down detail of the improvement; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary transverse section on line 6 6 of FIG. 1, showing a detail of an adjustable sleeve type coil end gauge and guide unit of the holder.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The holder of the invention, as generally designated by the reference numeral 10, has a stable and a strong support upon a floor or other horizontal surface through the agency of frame structure of a very simple nature, including a rectangular box-shaped base con stituted of four corner-welded angle iron parts 11 each presenting an upright outer flange 12. Vertical supporting posts or standards l3, 14- of hollow rectangular box section are strongly welded to said upright flanges of an opposed pair of the base angle irons 11; and at the top thereof each of the uprights 13, 14 has a shaft journaling saddle or open trunnion pad 15 welded thereto. These members, as indicated in FIG. 5, each present an upwardly concave journal seat of approximately 180 arcuate extent.

An elongated cylindrical shaft 16, tubular for lightness, is removably journaled adjacent its opposite ends in the saddles 15, being releasably restrained from above, just inwardly of one of the right-hand saddles 13 (FIG. 1) by means of a keeper element 17 fabricated of steel rod stock, such as is best shown in FIG. 5. This element has an arcuate hook-shaped upper end 18 adapted to partially encircle the shaft 16 from above, and its opposite end is formed as an elongated bight 19 having a bent upper end, thus afforing an elongated slot 20 permitting an up and down shift of keeper 17 on the post or standard 13. A stud and wing nut device 21 mounted on that post, with a spacer 22 intervening, provides a pivotal and sliding guide mount for the keeper 17, so that with the wing nut device taken up tightly, in a position of the keeper 17 shown in FIG. 5, the latter's hook end 18 wraps around the shaft 16, but only sufficiently tightly to prevent accidental dislodgement of that end of the shaft from the saddle 15, as well as to restrain the shaft from possible vibratory chatter. Yet, when the wing nut backed off the keeper 17 may be shifted up and swung free of the shaft to permit a ready removal of that end of the same for mounting a new coil to the holder 10. At its opposite end shaft 16 is restrained and rotatively controlled by belt and pulley means later described.

As best shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 6, a coil-supporting reel-type core or mandrel assembly of holder 10, generally designated by the reference numeral 24, is mounted fixedly to shaft 16, as at an approximate longitudinal mid-point thereof between posts 13, M, for rotation as a unit with the shaft. Assembly 24 essentially consists entirely of a conventional pneumatic automobile tire 25 of a selected tread diameter which is removably mounted conventionally to the rim of a wheel disc 26. Tire 25 has the usual valved inflating means (not shown); and the wheel disc 26 is appropriately secured rigidly, to the shaft 16, removably or as by welding, at the usual hub part 27 of the disc. The effective diameter of tire 26 may, for the purpose of the invention, be supplemented by a flexible cylindrical encircling shim 28 to afford an increase in the normal inflated diameter of the mandrel or core unit 24. The tire and/or shim diameter will, of course, be such that, when the tire is deflated, a typical size prewound coil C of metal strip or strap may be telescoped thereon, the coil being strongly gripped to the mandrel unit when the tire is re-inflated.

In order to end-gauge the tire 25 and guide coil C in unwinding, a cylindrical sleeve 29 provided with four 90 spaced radial gauge and guide spoke arms 30 is telescoped on shaft 16. The arms are in the form of flat rigid steel straps welded securely to the sleeve 29; and

when the sleeve is adjustably positioned and locked fast on shaft 16, as by means of a threaded hand piece 31 (FIG. 6) taking through the sleeve 29 and mating with a nut 32 welded to the latter, its gauge and guide arms or spokes 30 may have direct end engagement with the tire 25, shim 28 and coil C, as illustrated in FIG. 1; or the arms may be located more or less axially remote from the tire to accommodate coils C of greater width. At any optional location the arms afford a stable end guide for the coil as its strip stock S is unwound, as to the right in FIG. 3.

Shaft 16 is provided on its end adjacent the left-hand upright 14 (FIG. 1) with a belt pulley 33 whose hub 34 is welded or otherwise fixedly secured to shaft 16 outboard of the upright. An endless belt 35 is trained about the pulley 33, and also about a lower tensioning pulley 36 (FIGS. 1 and 3), which is joumaled at 36' on and adjacent the upper end of a belt tension control arm 37. Arm 37 is itself pivotally mounted adjacent its opposite lower end, as by a stud 38, to the angle arm length 12 of the holders base upon which the upright post 14 is welded.

Finally, a tension control lever 40 is pivotally mounted to the post 14 adjacent an end of the lever, as by a stud 41 carried by the post somewhat above the latters vertical mid-point. A laterally projecting headed operating part 43 is fixed on lever 40, and a shank portion of part 43 projects through an elongated, slot-like opening 44 of a camconfining member 45 fixed on control arm 37, the nature of which member is best shown in FIG. 4. It may take the form of an elongated rod part bent 90 at its ends and fixedly secured, as by welding, to an edge of arm 37, or in the alternative a slot may be milled or punched in the arm. Accordingly, it is seen that, as appears in FIG. 3, the belt tension control arm 37 is swingable in a vertical plane normal to shaft 16 through a limited arc X about its base pivot at 38, the control lever 40 is swingable about a limited arc Y; and as a result of these motions the lower belt tension pulley 36 journalled on arm 37 at 36' is swung about a limited arc Z centered at the axis of shaft 16, the control arm slot 44 accommodating the linear motion of the levers operating part 43.

Such swing of sprocket 36 serves to increase or diminish tension in the belt 35; and with the tension diminished maximally the belt is sufficiently loose to be hand-removed readily from pulleys 33 and 35. This enables the shaft 16 to be dismounted from the journal saddles on uprights l3 and 14, and to be quickly replaced thereon when a new coil C has been telescoped on its mandrel, core or reel unit 24 and made fast thereto upon re-inflation of tire 25. With the keeper l7 replaced on shaft 16 and the belt 35 restored to sprockets 33, 36, belt tension may be adjusted and maintained as desired by an attendants manipulation of the control lever 40, thus regulating as desired the resistance exerted by unit 24 of holder 10 to unreeling of the strip S.

What is claimed is:

l. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil-mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, including a shaft on which said mandrel member is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount, said shaft having a gauge device fixedly mounted thereon for rotation therewith and provided with means to adjust the same axially of the shaft, said device presenting radially extending means for axially adjustable engagement with an end of the coil.

2. The holder of claim 1, in which said mandrel member is an automobile tire.

3. The holder of claim 1, in which said journal parts are open and saddle-like and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said shaft and mandrel member being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the member.

4. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil-mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, said last named means including a shaft on which said mandrel member is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount, said journal parts being open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said restraining means comprising a pulley-like element fixed on said shaft, and an endless belt-like element trained about said first-named element.

5. The holder of claim 4, and further comprising means to vary the tension of said endless element, thus to vary the restraining effort exerted by said elements on the shaft.

6. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, said mandrel member being an automobile tire and said last named means including a shaft on which said tire is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount on opposite axial sides of said tire, said journal parts being open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said shaft and tire being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the tire, said restraining means comprising a pulley-like element fixed on said shaft axially outwardly of one of said journal parts, and an endless belt-like element trained about said first-named element.

7. The holder of claim 6, and further comprising means to vary the tension of said endless element, thus to vary the restraining effort exerted by said elements on the shaft.

8. The holder of claim 7, in which said restraining means comprises, in addition to said elements, a hooklike element engageable with said shaft adjacent the other journal part, being readily releasable from said engagement.

llnite States atet 1 m1 9 9 Schwartz 1 May 1, 1973 [54] ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHHC COPY PAPER SUPPLY ROLL AND MOUNTING ASSEMBLY THEREFOR Inventor: Herman Schwartz, Wayne, NJ

Assignee: Pitney Bowes-Sage, lnc., Hawthorne,

Filed: Apr. 12, 1971 Appl. No.: 133,235

US. Cl ..242/68.4, 242/685 Int. Cl. ..B65h 19/02 Field of Search ..242/68, 68.4, 67.3 R,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Fish ..242/68 Primary Examiner-George F. Mautz Assistant Examiner-Edward J. McCarthy Attorney-William D. Soltow, Jr., Albert W. Scribner, Martin D. Wittstein and Louis A. Tirelli paper supply roll employed in an electrostatic copier includes a spindle removably mounted against rotation by a pair of end brackets secured to the copier frame. The core of the supply roll has a stepped bore and is mounted for rotation on a pair of different diameter hubs adjustably axially keyed on the spindle for varying supply roll widths. The assembly insures proper orientation of the photoconductive coating on the copy paper relative to the copier while maintaining the supply roll centrally positioned in relation to the optical axis thereof.

2 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures i 1 lab n4 I28 io2 n2 L i 4 

1. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coilmounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, including a shaft on which said mandrel member is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount, said shaft having a gauge device fixedly mounted thereon for rotation therewith and provided with means to adjust the same axially of the shaft, said device presenting radially extending means for axially adjustable engagement with an end of the coil.
 2. The holder of claim 1, in which said mandrel member is an automobile tire.
 3. The holder of claim 1, in which said journal parts are open and saddle-like and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said shaft and mandrel member being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the member.
 4. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil-mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, said last named means including a shaft on which said mandrel member is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount, said journal parts being open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said restraining means comprising a pulley-like element fixed on said shaft, and an endless belt-like element trained about said first-named element.
 5. The holder of claim 4, and further comprising means to vary the tension of said endless element, thus to vary the restraining effort exerted by said elements on the shaft.
 6. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, said mandrel member being an automobile tire and said last named means including a shaft on which said tire is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount on opposite axial sides of said tire, said journal parts being open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said shaft and tire being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the tire, said restraining means comprising a pulley-like element fixed on said shaft axially outwardly of one of said journal parts, and an endless belt-like element trained about said first-named element.
 7. The holder of claim 6, and further comprising means to vary the tension of said endless element, thus to vary the restraining effort exerted by said elements on the shaft.
 8. The holder of claim 7, in which said restraining means comprises, in addition to said elements, a hook-like element engageable with said shaft adjacent the other journal part, being readily releasable from said engagement.
 9. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil-mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, said mandrel member being an automobile tire and said last named means including a shaft on which said tire is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount on opposite axial sides of said tire, said journal parts being open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagemeNt with said parts, said shaft and mandrel member being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the member, said shaft having a gauge device mounted thereon and presenting radially extending means for axially adjustable engagement with an end of the coil, said gauge device including a sleeve telescoped on said shaft and having means clamping the same in an axially adjusted position relative to the coil.
 10. A coil holder comprising a frame structure and a coil-mounting unit mounted for rotation on said structure, said unit comprising an annular, fluid pressure-inflatable and deflatable mandrel member adapted to have radially outward gripping engagement with the coil when inflated, and means for effecting the rotative mount of said member on said structure, said mandrel member being an automobile tire and said last named means including a shaft on which said tire is mounted, said frame structure providing axially spaced journal parts at which said shaft has a readily releasable mount on opposite axial sides of said tire, said journal parts being open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said shaft and mandrel member being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the member, said shaft having a gauge device mounted thereon and presenting radially extending means for axially adjustable engagement with an end of the coil, said gauge device including a sleeve telescoped on said shaft and having means clamping the same in an axially adjusted position relative to the coil, said radially extending means being in the form of radial spokes fixed on said sleeve.
 11. The holder of claim 1 in which said journal parts are open and saddle-like, and readily releasable means for restraining said shaft in rotative engagement with said parts, said shaft and tire being bodily shiftable as a unit off said parts for the mounting of a coil on the tire.
 12. The holder of claim 11 in which said restraining means comprises a pulley-like element fixed on said shaft, and an endless belt-like element trained about said first-named element.
 13. The holder of claim 11 in which said restraining means comprises a pulley-like element fixed on said shaft axially outwardly of one of said journal parts, and an endless belt-like element trained about said first-named element.
 14. The holder of claim 12, and further comprising means to vary the tension of said endless element, thus to vary the restraining effort exerted by said elements on the shaft.
 15. The holder of claim 13, in which said restraining means comprises, in addition to said elements, a hook-like element engageable with said shaft adjacent the other journal part, being readily releasable from said engagement. 